Gadget Boy & Heather, or simply Gadget Boy, is an animated television series co-produced by DIC Productions, L.P., France Animation, and M6. The series is a spin-off of Inspector Gadget and follows the adventures of a bionic kid detective as he saves the world from the evil Spydra, with assistance from his robotic dog G-9 and the wise Agent Heather. As with Gadget, Don Adams provides the voice of the titular character.
The series debuted in the United States on September 9, 1995, airing on Syndicated television stations as part of Bohbot Entertainment's Amazin' Adventures II block. Its French debut occurred on October 25 on M6's M6 Kid children's strand. The show's second season reformatted the show as an edutainment series entitled Gadget Boy's Adventures in History, airing in the United States on The History Channel from 1997 until 1998, while remaining on M6 in France. It was the last piece of Inspector Gadget material in which Don Adams voiced the character in any form before his retirement in 1999 and eventual death in 2005.
Synopsis This series is about "Gadget Boy", a bionic kid detective with a personality similar to that of Inspector Gadget. Just as clumsy as the original Inspector Gadget, Gadget Boy was usually bailed out of situations by the more practical Heather, though he was also helped greatly by his myriad high-tech gadgets and extendable arms and legs.
Gadget Boy's bionic implants were installed by Switzerland-based inventor Myron Dabble (voiced by Maurice LaMarche), who has an unrequited crush on Heather. Gadget Boy and Heather receive their assignments from Italy-based Chief Stromboli (also voiced by LaMarche), who, much like Chief Quimby, is a frequent, long-suffering victim of Gadget Boy's bungling. Gadget Boy is assisted by the beautiful and resourceful agent Heather (voiced by Tara Strong), a very tall equivalent of sorts to Penny (the difference being that Heather is in her early 20s). He is also assisted by a robotic dog named G-9 (also LaMarche), who serves as the "Brain" of this series, which shows through his morphing capabilities to get the gang out of the stickiest situations.
The main villain of this series, instead of Dr. Claw, is the mask-wearing six-armed villainess Spydra (voiced by Louise Vallance). Spydra is accompanied by Boris, a frequently abused, wisecracking, sarcastic vulture with a Russian accent, along with her twin henchmen Mulch and Houmous; they are all played by Maurice LaMarche.
The main title theme song was written and performed by Mike Piccirillo. Musical underscore composers were Mike Piccirillo and Jean-Michel Guirao.
Characters
Heroes Gadget Boy (voiced by Don Adams, later Maurice LaMarche in English; Luq Hamet and later Élie Semoun in French) is a bionic police detective working for Interpol in New York City. Equipped by his dog, G-9, and assisted by Heather, he was conceived as a bionic "child" with the personality of a "perfect adult detective" (although as with the aforementioned Inspector Gadget, he is anything but). Much like Inspector Gadget, Gadget Boy is equipped with gadgets in his body while he is clumsy as Gadget but will use the gadgets to get out of sticky situations. The bionic implants were installed by the inventor Myron Dabble. Agent Heather bails Gadget Boy out of danger, though he was also helped greatly by his myriad high-tech gadgets and extendable arms and legs. However, Gadget Boy is usually seen with Heather and G-9, unlike Gadget, who in the original series, will usually inform Penny and Brain once he receives his assignment that the mission is too dangerous and that he will be going on the mission alone, and usually be convinced that a disguised Brain is a M.A.D. agent. Gadget Boy and G-9 appear to switch between being fully robotic to being half-robotic in different episodes. In "Gadget Boy and the Uncommon Cold", it is revealed that Gadget Boy is half-robot and thus catches a cold while G-9 does not. However, in "Boy Power of Babble", Gadget Boy is unaffected by the "babblizer ray" because he is half robot with a mechanical brain, whereas G-9 is completely robotic. As the original voice of Inspector Gadget, Adams voices Gadget Boy in a similar manner. Gadget Boy commonly says "Sowsers! Bowsers!", similar to Inspector Gadget's catchphrase, "Wowsers!" Agent Heather (voiced by Tara Charendoff in English and Catherine Privat in French) is an Interpol agent and aide to Gadget Boy. Heather has a slim build with short auburn hair and blue eyes and wears a green jacket, white shirt, blue jeans and dark teal ballet shoes. She is a more resourceful agent and is the equivalent of Penny from Inspector Gadget, except Heather is much taller than Penny and appears to be in her early 20s. Her name is Estelle in the French version, and it is revealed in "Gadget Boy and the Wee Folk" that her bloodline is Irish. G-9 (voiced by Maurice LaMarche) is Gadget Boy's robotic dog, similar to Brain. He can morph into anything and assists Gadget Boy to get him and his gang out of the stickiest situations. Gadget Boy and G-9 appear to switch between being fully robotic to being half robotic in different episodes. Although G-9 is a robot dog, in "Boy Power of Babble", G-9 is revealed to be half robot when he is affected by the "babblizer ray", enabling him the ability to speak in an old English, intelligent accent. Unlike Brain, G-9 is usually seen with Gadget Boy, and Gadget Boy does not mistake him for being an enemy agent, as opposed to when the original Inspector Gadget will usually, on the case, mistake Brain appearing incognito for being a M.A.D. agent. Chief Drake Stromboli (voiced LaMarche) is the chief of Interpol with an Italian accent. Stromboli has white hair and a white mustache and gives Gadget Boy and Heather their assignments. Like Chief Quimby, Stromboli is a frequent, long-suffering victim of Gadget Boy's bungling. Assignments are printed on a long sheet of paper, often coming out of his tie, compared to the self-destructing paper on which Inspector Gadget will receive his messages, and don't blow up in his face. Myron Dabble (voiced by LaMarche) is a bespectacled inventor working for Interpol. He is the man who, like von Slickstein, equipped Gadget Boy with his gadgets. Myron has an unrequited crush on Heather. In "Back to the Vulture", it is revealed that he was really born in Cleveland and speaks with a Swiss accent because he moved to Switzerland in his youth.
Villains Spydra (voiced by Louise Vallance in English and Monique Thierry in French) is the series' primary antagonist. Spydra wears a pink mask and has six arms, speaks in a loud voice, and is almost the female equivalent of Dr. Claw. Her primary goals are to bring down Gadget Boy and commit various grand crimes. Usually, Spydra is seen in her lair, much like Claw at his computer terminal, either in his castle or on the M.A.D.mobile, but does not run a large scale criminal organization similar to M.A.D. Also, Spydra's whole body can be seen, unlike Claw in the original series, where only his arms are seen and he is hiding behind a chair, and Spydra can get out of her chair. Spydra sports six arms and hides her face under a mask, occasionally removing it to use one of her main powers: the ability to petrify anyone who sees her real face. However, the unmasking is always offscreen or is obscured. Her pet is a vulture named Boris, whom she is usually abusive towards, often using alliterations to insult Boris. Spydra's minions are twin brothers Mulch and Hummus, the only recurring minions in the series, as opposed to the different recurring unnamed M.A.D. agents in Inspector Gadget (and sometimes a supervillain who will have a name and appear once, which is less apparent in the second season of the series). Her name is Arachna in the French version. Boris (voiced by LaMarche) is Spydra's pet talking vulture. A long-suffering victim of Spydra's verbal abuse, Boris speaks in a Russian accent. He differs from M.A.D. Cat in that M.A.D. Cat is a foil to Claw, in which he will either be petted or pounded on, whereas Boris is only abused in many ways by Spydra, such as being insulted, thrown, or, in extreme cases, petrified by Spydra. He tends to remind Spydra he has a desk job and likes food. Mulch and Hummus (both voiced by LaMarche) are twin brothers and Spydra's criminal henchmen, often sent to do her dirty work. The design of Mulch and Hummus is somewhat like the recurring M.A.D. agents from the original Inspector Gadget series; however, Mulch and Hummus are the only henchmen to Spydra, as opposed to a large number of M.A.D. agents working for Dr. Claw. The running gag is she can't tell them apart (Boris says Hummus is the one with the big nose).
Episodes
Season 1 (1995–1996) Raiders of the Lost Mummies (9 September 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Jeffrey Scott, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr From Russia with Gadget Boy (16 September 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Don't Burst my Bubble (23 September 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Steve Pesce, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Gadget Boy in Toyland (30 September 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Steve Pesce, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Gadget Boy and the Wee Folk (7 October 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr You Oughta Be in Paintings (14 October 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Steve Pesce, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr All That Gadgets Is Not Glitter (21 October 1995): written by Christian Darcy and Pat Allee Gadget Boy and the Great Race (28 October 1995): written by Christian Darcy and Aubrey Tadman Gadget Boy and the Ship of Fools (4 November 1995): written by Christian Darcy and Kevin Donahue Gadget Boy and the Uncommon Cold (11 November 1995): written by Christian Darcy and Kevin Donahue Double Double Toil and Dabble (18 November 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Gadget Boy Squadron (25 November 1995): written by Christian Darcy and Kevin Donahue My Gadget Guard (2 December 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Steve Pesce, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Treasure of the Sierra Gadget (9 December 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Gadget Boy and the Dumpling Gang (16 December 1995): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr The Day the Gadget Boy Stood Still (6 January 1996): written by Christian Darcy, Steve Pesce, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Monumental Mayhem (13 January 1996): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Jurassic Spydra (20 January 1996): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Gadget Boy's Tiniest Adventure (27 January 1996): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Power of Babble (3 February 1996): written by Christian Darcy and Terence Taylor Pirate of the Airwaves (10 February 1996): written by Christian Darcy, Steve Pesce, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Jaws and Teeth Too (17 February 1996): written by Christian Darcy and Jean Chalopin Eight Hands are Quicker Than Gadget Boy (24 February 1996): written by Christian Darcy and Kyle Gaither Boris for President (2 March 1996): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian Mohr All Webbed Up, Nowhere to Go (9 March 1996): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr Vulture of the Bride (16 March 1996): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, and Eleanor Burian-Mohr
Season 2 (1997–1998) The Vulture Has Landed (Neil Armstrong, 1969, Moon ) (6 September 1997): written by Steve Pesce and Eleanor Burian-Mohr The Long and Winding Wall (The Dragon King, China, 211 BC) (13 September 1997): written by Jack Hanrahan and Eleanor Burian-Mohr For Whom the Torch Rolls (Zeus, 400 BC, Olympia, Greece) (20 September 1997): written by Christian Darcy, Jack Hanrahan, Eleanor Burian-Mohr, and Louis Gassin